Apex Update- your help is needed.

A couple of us have been working diligently with some staff at JCOS to get Apex open- we went with Honey instead of vinegar. Our friends over there have let us know that without some outside pressure, they won’t open before April 1st.

Here's the thing- We’ve been told for the last two months that the reason that Apex has remained closed is because they are planning a re-route of Pick n’ Sledge and that the trail would need to be closed during construction. However, it is clear now that the re-route of Pick n Sledge will not be finished by March 31st (and, from what we gather, never was going to be). So, JCOS is sticking with the March 31st date for no clear reason. JCOS released to their Advisory Committee that they are still planning on hitting the March 31st deadline to open “Phase 1” of Apex Park.

There is no work that needs to be done between now and March 31st (other than maybe putting up a few signs to remind people to be courteous, and which trails are still closed, etc). The trails that are scheduled to be open at the end of the month will looks exactly the same as they do today, as they did one month ago, as they have, more or less, since the second week in September of 2013, SIX MONTHS AGO, when they were closed.

If there are no major trail alterations, reroutes, or safety concerns keeping the frontside of the park closed (Argos, Pick n’ Sledge, Grubstake, Bonanza- possibly even lower Apex to the junction with Pick n’ Sledge [this section has already been repaired]), then the park should be opened tomorrow. It should’ve been opened yesterday. It should have been opened several months ago.

Today, take 5 minute and voice your opinion if you’re interested in seeing our park re-opened sooner than later, send an e-mail or make a phone call to Tom Hoby, the Director of JCOS. His e-mail is thoby@jeffco.us and his number is (303) 271-5925. Also hit up the Jefferson County Open Space Facebook page - they will see our responses a lot faster.

And let’s be professional about it- it doesn’t need to be castigating of the process or the ineptitude or any of that stuff- Tom is interested in serving the public, but doesn’t always get to hear our voices. Others on his staff don’t think we amount to much, and that we are only a few in number who are frustrated by the extended closure. Feel free to keep it simple and short. Let him know we’ve all waited long enough for our park to be re-opened. Enough excuses, enough delays. Re-open Apex.

Done. The more of us that weigh in on this, the better prepared we'll be to defend our black diamond trails when they rebuild Apex.

Here's a copy of my email to Tom Hoby:
Tom -

Just a quick note as it relates to Apex: please reconsider your decision to keep Phase 1 closed until April. We’ve been without our local park for half a year without any good reason for the closure. We’ve been patient, we’ve worked with your staff, we’ve kept hope alive that this closure has been for a good reason, but the bottom line: the majority of Apex is 100% safe and undamaged. At least open Phase 1 immediately - we’ve waited long enough.

Many of you probably received the JCOS Parks Panorama newsletter in your e-mail inboxes. If you scroll down, you'll see this information here:

Apex Park Partial Reopening March 31 -- Phase 1 of repairs to Apex Park will be completed on schedule or possibly early, with a partial reopening of the park scheduled for Monday, March 31. The Argos, Bonanza, Grubstake and Pick 'N Sledge Trails will be accessible from the east trailhead. The trails are in "as is" condition. Please recreate with care and observe all posted signage.

This is their statement, not mine. The trails are in as-is condition. We are shooting for the "or possibly early" option mentioned above.

"There are two kinds of mountain bikers in the world: those who are faster than me, and me."

Apex Park Re-Opens Friday, March 14, 2014
Partial opening will allow multi-use of moderately damaged Trails
Jeffco Open Space will re-open the northeast portion of Apex Park on March 14, 2014. After assessing damage and slope stability and planning for flood repairs, Jeffco Open Space will open use on a limited portion of Apex Park. Trail repairs and re-opening have been divided in three phases. Phase one, shown below in red, includes the Argos, Grubstake, Bonanza and the unrepaired Pick-N-Sledge Trails that will be open for use on March 14. The Second Phase, shown below in yellow, includes the Sluicebox, Hardscrabble and upper Apex Trails scheduled to open by June 30, 2014. The Third and final Phase, show below in blue, includes the Enchanted Forest, Poco Calle and lower Apex Trails that will open by September 30, 2014. A popular Park for mountain biking and hiking, the opening of Phase 1 and Phase 2 will allow for multiple use without temporal or directional restrictions. Once the Park has been fully restored, Apex Park will return to the mountain biking, directional, odd-day management strategy to reduce conflicts.

We are pleased to announce that Apex Park Phase 1 trails will open this Friday, March 14! Assuming it doesn’t snow (or rain) like it is right now on Lookout Mountain for a week, we should have the necessary signage in place and be able to have the entrance trail from the east access area off Kinney Run Trail and the upper Heritage Square parking lot roughed in to allow for safe access into the Phase 1 trails of Apex Park. For more detailed information, please see the updated Apex Park information sheet and press release.

Some of the upcoming volunteer projects occurring at Apex are listed on the attached information sheet, but if you would like the latest information or sign up to volunteer, please see this link- Trail Building - Jefferson County, Colorado.

I suppose I should have read to the end of the post first, but I sent in my email after reading the first post. It was benign, so hopefully it will reinforce some good will.
Cheers and see you on APEX.

Apex Update- your help is needed.

Went by this AM and talked to JCOS staff. Got to see the reworked lower section but WAY too muddy to ride past that. The JCOS staff expressed a bit of concern about the crowds and mud this weekend so keep that in mind if you are thinking about trying this weekend...might be better next week.

At any rate, kudos to JCOS for getting phase 1 open. It's not the whole thing but it's an important milestone. Also they said the outpouring of volunteer enthusiasm from the MTB community for trail work days etc. had been amazing so that's great!